League party of Italy to present no-confidence motion - report

The ruling party of Italy, League party, formally called as Lega Nord will be presenting a no-confidence motion in the government amid rift, according to media reports. Italy's far-right Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Matteo Salvini pulled his support for the country's governing coalition on Thursday and called for snap elections. 5-Star Movement leader Luigi Di Maio also earlier expressed a willingness to participate in snap parliamentary elections.

Long-rumbling tensions between the 14-month-old coalition's populist leaders have peaked in recent days, with the row centered on the financing of a multibillion-euro high-speed train line. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte put tenders on hold in March which led the eruption of political clashes over the railway project that connects the Italian city of Turin and the French city of Lyon.

The project is bitterly opposed by Five Star on environmental and cost grounds whereas the League argues that it would create jobs and stimulate economic growth and that moving freight from road to rail is environmentally friendly.

The government is struggling to rein in its public deficit and its mammoth debt mountain of more than USD 2.57bn.